Late in 2021, I stumbled across an EP from a solo artist under the name Nekrotisk. I was totally floored by the sheer ferocity of the music that I immediately went and snagged a copy on Bandcamp and added the tunes to the Brewtal Awakenings playlist. Those actions led to a friendship between the individual behind the project and me. So, when Matt reached out to me to take a listen to his newest Nekrotisk offering, Apraxia II: The Forlorn Continuum, I jumped at the chance to listen to it and decided after just one listen, this needed a proper review.
This newest release is at times a continuation from the previous EP, Apraxia I: Mors Certa, but also one of immense growth and experimentation with the sound of the band. The first sign of growth was the production. Everything sounded sharper, more pronounced and perfectly balanced in the mix. No one instrument was dominating the sound. Everything was where it needed to be and balanced beautifully.
The first three songs were cut from a similar cloth as the previous EP. Ferocious, violent blackened death comes screaming out the speakers from the moment you press play. The riffs are icy and sharp like the Minnesota winter, the drums alternating from a d-beat style to galloping double bass, and the vocals alternate between a higher pitched scream/yell and a gruff growl. The solo in the opener “Delusions of Grandeur” is the chef’s kiss. I kept going back to that part, never being able to get enough of it.
The fourth song “Sic Semper Tyrannis” totally blew me away. This was straight up blackened punk done right. A Motorhead-esque riff comes flying out after the first seconds as Matt lets out a vicious scream. The drums are breakneck pretty much the whole damn song except for a nice little pause to let the bass do its thing for a moment. The fucking solo in this track absolutely shreds it victims into a million little pieces before the dive bomb comes in and scorches what is left of them. This song will without a doubt have everyone in the venue losing their collective shit (Matt has brought in people to make this a live band and has been playing shows).
The EP closes with “Clairvoyant”, which comes after a noise track that is done by Nekrotisk live bassist Micah “Incendiis” Adams and is on the slower side as compared to all the previous tracks. It was a great choice for an album closer as it slowly builds over the four-minute run time but never reaches the warp speed tempo we were used to over the other four tracks on the EP. It gives the listener a chance to reflect on the EP rather then be beaten into a bloody pulp one last time.
I hope this write up leads you to check out this EP when it drops on Friday July 28. If you fancy some great blackened death, then look no further then this excellent release from Nekrotisk. Cheers!
- The Metal Architect
